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Equivalent Qualification

"Equivalent" means equivalent in the opinion of the Water Authority. Examples of equivalent qualification are as follows:-

• a Plumbing Craft Certificate issued by the City and Guilds of London ^{Note 1} ;
• a valid fellowship/membership of The Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering of the United Kingdom (applicable to applicant with date of obtaining fellowship/membership on or before 30 Jun 2023)^{Note 2} ;
• a valid fellowship/membership of The Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering of the United Kingdom recommended by its Hong Kong Branch via Professional Plumber Practical Examination (applicable to applicant with date of obtaining fellowship/membership on or after 1 Jul 2023);
• a Certificate in "Refresher Course on Plumbing and Pipefitting" issued by the Vocational Training Council ^{Note 1}
• a Diploma in Plumbing Engineering issued by the Vocational Training Council ^{Note 1} ; 
• a Certificate in Plumbing and Pipefitting issued by the Vocational Training Council ^{Note 1};
• a Diploma in Construction (Plumbing) issued by the Hong Kong Institute of Construction ^{Note 1};
• attainment of qualification in Pipe Installation (QF level 3) ^{Note 1} and Pipe Repair and Maintenance (QF level 3) ^{Note 1} via Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)^{Note 3} AND Diploma recognised at Qualifications Framework level 3 or above (or equivalent level)^{Note 4} in relevant engineering field^{Note 5} ;
• attainment of qualification in Plumbing Engineering (Project Management) (QF level 4) ^{Note 1} via RPL ^{Note 3} AND Diploma recognised at Qualifications Framework level 4 or above / Degree recognised at Qualifications Framework level 5 (or equivalent level) ^{Note 4} in relevant engineering field ^{Note 5}; or
• Professional Diploma in Plumbing Engineering (QF Level 4) that is provided by the Vocational Training Council in academic year 2020/21 or after ^{Note 1}.

Note 1: The issue date of the certificate is within 5 years before the date of application.

Note 2: This route will only be valid up to 30 Jun 2025.

Note 3: For RPL qualifications in Pipe Installation (QF level 3) and Pipe Repair and Maintenance (QF level 3), the means of assessment shall be interview.  For details on obtaining the qualification via RPL, please refer to the following link and contact Qualifications Framework (QF) Secretariat at 3793 3955.

https://rpl.vtc.edu.hk/en/em-services

Note 4: For local qualification awarded in or after 2020, the programme shall be recognised under Qualifications Framework and registered in the Qualifications Register (QR) (www.hkqr.gov.hk).  For local qualification awarded before 2020, the qualification shall be awarded by the education institutes registered/established under the relevant legislation (e.g Vocational Training Council).  Overseas qualification may be accepted provided that the applicant can provide a qualifications assessment issued by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ) to demonstrate that the level of overseas qualification is comparable to the relevant level of Qualifications Framework in Hong Kong.

Note 5: Relevant engineering field includes building services, civil, electrical, fire services, mechanical and plumbing.